Field
This disclosure relates to the decommissioning of multifunction peripherals.
Description of the Related Art
A multifunction peripheral (MFP) is a type of document processing device which is an integrated device providing at least two document processing functions, such as print, copy, scan and fax. In a document processing function, an input document (electronic or physical) is used to automatically produce a new output document (electronic or physical).
Documents may be physically or logically divided into pages. A physical document is paper or other physical media bearing information which is readable unaided by the typical human eye. An electronic document is any electronic media content (other than a computer program or a system file) that is intended to be used in either an electronic form or as printed output. Electronic documents may consist of a single data file, or an associated collection of data files which together are a unitary whole. Electronic documents will be referred to further herein as documents, unless the context requires some discussion of physical documents, which will be referred to by that name specifically.
In printing, the MFP automatically produces a physical document from an electronic document. In copying, the MFP automatically produces a physical document from a physical document. In scanning, the MFP automatically produces an electronic document from a physical document. In faxing, the MFP automatically transmits via fax an electronic document from an input physical document, which the MFP has also scanned, or from an input electronic document, which the MFP has converted to a fax format.
MFPs are often incorporated into corporate or other organization's networks, which also include various other workstations, servers and peripherals. An MFP may also provide remote document processing services to external or network devices.
Decommissioning an MFP has often been a tedious, but necessary process. In particular, the decommission process either required special devices or equipment to commence a decommission. Alternatively, administrative access, either to a local network or to a device itself (set on an MFP-by-MFP basis) was required. While this is done for security, it results in an overly-complicated process.
Still, decommissioning is necessary to ensure that user data stored on the MFP is not inadvertently shared with the next user of an MFP. MFPs today often interact with networks (including passwords and other authentication) and may store either directly or in residual memory copies of copy, scan, print or facsimile jobs that it has previously performed. As a result, decommissioning is an important step that should precede any transfer of an MFP out of a business or other entity that utilizes MFPs.
Throughout this description, elements appearing in figures are assigned three-digit reference designators, where the most significant digit is the figure number where the element is introduced and the two least significant digits are specific to the element. An element that is not described in conjunction with a figure may be presumed to have the same characteristics and function as a previously-described element having the same reference designator.